a peek inside the fishbowl

I’m busy charging my batteries, so it’s Guest Post Week here at the Fishbowl! First up, Kaitlin, an Ottawa blogger who I’ve actually met in real life (!). She writes a lot about great food finds here in O-town and posts yummy recipes on her blog too. She’s a whole bunch of awesome.

– 

Hello! I’m absolutely terrible at this introduction stuff. In short, I’m Kaitlin of Heartful Mouthful. When I’m not writing about food, I research and write about public art for the National Capital Commission. I’m actually studying environmental consciousness at museums, but public art is really just a hop, skip and a jump away from that. Especially when you live in Ottawa.

The National Capital Commissionmight be the biggest cheerleader of Ottawa and Gatineau. In addition to managing parks, organizing Canada Day and Winterlude, and operating Bike Days on Sundays in the summer time, the NCC is also the biggest steward of public art in the region.

In working with them this summer, I realized quickly that public art is not all prime ministers and war memorials.

I love walking with my ten year-old niece down the streets of Ottawa and telling her stories about the pieces and asking her what she thinks. She is brutally honest. This one? It looks like a TV test screen. It’s also a good way to teach younger kids how to landmark. How many tree trunks made of stainless steel does Ottawa have?

There are some pieces of public art in the region that are more fun to be around than others, and that goes for adults as much as children: A group of jazz students this summer were far more interested about Sir Galahad than they were about any of our Prime Ministers.

In fact, most people walk by Sir Galahad on Wellington Street without really noticing him. He was created to commemorate Henry Harper, a friend of Prime Minister MacKenzie King, who died while attempting to save a woman from drowning in the Ottawa River. The monument is an interesting one of the few interpretations of legends and myths in Ottawa. If you’re getting tired looking at politicians on Wellington Street, Galahad does a good job at reminding you of old-school, fairytale heroism.

Down the street and around the corner on Elgin Street are two wonderful, albeit different, pieces of public art. The Queen’s unveiling of the Oscar Peterson statue brought pomp and circumstance to Elgin Street. Oscar, however, is very accessible: There’s space on the piano bench for you to sit next to him and younger children can pretend to play his Bosendorfer piano.

Further down on Elgin, near City Hall, you will find The Living Room, a bit secluded, but offering a great picnicking spot. The concept is design to characterize different aspects of daily life, the focus being on the television as a window on the world. Older kids might appreciate the symbolism, but younger ones will just have fun running through the door and peering through the window: It’s like a playhouse, but without walls.

While there is no shortage of public art in the Byward Market, I find it to be less accessible and more well-known than other works. I would however, recommend going to the second floor of the Market Square building to get a proper viewing of McClintock’s Dream, a paper-mache piece that interprets the roles of market vendors in an incredibly whimsical fashion. Another option is taking a Haunted Walks tourthrough the Market, which will allow you to view the different pieces, without emphasizing the nitty-gritty art details.

Outings are another good opportunity to explore some of the more interesting works of art in the city. If you’re spending time at the Museum of Civilizationin Gatineau, take a break from the historical exhibits and go see the abstract people, called Personnages, created for Expo ’67. There’s also a huge bronze casting, by Aboriginal artist Bill Reid, which is one of three works of his featured on the $20 bill.

There is, of course, Maman, just outside the National Gallery (my favourite piece in Ottawa). However, behind the Gallery, at Nepean Point there is a statue to Samuel de Champlain, who is holding his astrolabe upside down, a public art blooper if you will. While Champlain is one of the oldest statues in Ottawa, Nepean Point will also be home to Ottawa’s newest public art piece in early September, when Roxy Paine’s 100 Foot Line is unveiled. While it looks like just another line, it’s rooted (no pun intended) in the idea that trees act as storytellers. Children might see other things in it, or might have an idea as to what this tree is telling us.

If you prefer you art with sound and movement, the show at Parliament Hill, Mosaika, is well worth a look. It explores the Canadian cultural and historical landscapes, but is far from typical stereotypes. It runs until September 12.

All said, you don’t have to go out on an art treasure hunt, fun as that might be. You can find art along the bike paths, in libraries and as part of the design of everyday buildings.

The most comprehensive resource, and perhaps I am biased here, is Street SmArt, the NCC’s guide to public art in the capital region. It features 85 pieces of art in various neighbourhoods. There is a coordinating that you can download or use to figure out what pieces are nearby your other favourite spots in the city.